Jul 30, 2007 - 10:56 am .- The Congregation of the Missionaries of the Precious Blood have elected Father Francesco Bartoloni as their new superior general for the next six years. The election took place during the 19th General Assembly at the Most Precious Blood School in Rome July 16-27.

Jul 30, 2007 - 10:52 am .- Upon concluding the recitation of the Angelus this Sunday with a group of pilgrims at the papal summer residence of Castelgandolfo, Pope Benedict XVI said that atomic energy should be used for peaceful ends.

Jul 30, 2007 - 10:43 am .- The Pope's private secretary warned against the Islamization of Europe and stressed the need for the continent's Christian roots not to be ignored, reported The Daily Telegraph.

Jul 30, 2007 - 10:37 am .- The Catholic Church in South Korea is bracing for a legal battle to protect life. Prompted by the recent plans of the South Korean government to back cloning efforts by disgraced scientist Dr. Woo-Suk Hwang (who in 2005 fraudulently claimed to have cloned human embryos), Cardinal Nicholas Cheong has announced that the Catholic Church will be actively supporting lay efforts in the fall session of the National Assembly in defense of human rights and the dignity of the human person.

Jul 30, 2007 - 10:37 am .- She’s 19, home-schooled and the leader of a new movement to make abortion illegal in Colorado. Kristine Burton has wanted to do something to stop abortion since she was 13 years old, she told the Denver Post in a recent interview.

Jul 30, 2007 - 10:11 am .- At the conclusion of the recitation of yesterday’s Angelus at Castelgandolfo, Pope Benedict XVI made a special appeal for the 22 South Koreans kidnapped by Taliban militants in Afghanistan, calling for an end to such kidnappings.

Jul 30, 2007 - 10:02 am .- In her inaugural address upon assuming the presidency of India, the country’s first female leader called for an end to abortions based on sex preference. India is one of the countries with the highest number of abortions of female babies.
President Pratibha Patil, 72, said that for her, "Empowerment of women is particularly important to me as I believe this leads to the empowerment of the nation."

Jul 30, 2007 - 08:56 am .- Cardinal Sean O’Malley of Boston made history yesterday by appointing Tiziana Dearing as the first woman to ever lead Catholic Charities in Eastern Massachusetts. The new appointment comes as Fr. J. Bryan Hehir leaves the position so that he can spend more time working as the Secretary for Social Services for the Archdiocese. For the past three years, Fr. Hehir has served as the head of both Catholic Charities and as the Secretary for Social Services.